Time’s 2011 Person of the Year most fitting

Each year Time nominates an individual whose contributions to world literature, politics, pop culture, or technology have been so monumental that, for better or worse, they have substantially mobilized the events of that year.

In previous years, Time's Person of the Year award has gone to Gandhi, FDR, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, JFK, Pope John Paul II, Mikhail Gorbachev, Henry Kissinger, Barack Obama, and Mark Zuckerberg, to name a few. From ideological icons to tyrannous dictators, Time has dedicated its Person of the Year award not to celebrate the most loved or most feared individual of the year, but instead to encourage its readers to take notice of who, what, why and how their world has changed in 362 days.

Although generally the esteemed title is crafted for an individual, occasionally it is granted to an idea, a movement, or a group of people. For instance, In 1968, the magazine saluted the space race by giving the award to "U.S. Astronauts." In 1975 "American Women" took the title and in 1982 Time celebrated the upcoming technological revolution by naming "The Computer" as the Person of the Year.

Veering slightly from the norm, this year Time chose not to give the award to a specific person, but instead to a widespread metaphor, announcing "The Protestor" as its 2011 Person of the Year.

Some have argued Time's selection to be unwarranted, claiming it snubs nominees like Kate Middleton, Chinese Artist Ai Weiwei, House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, the late Apple Co-founder Steve Jobs, and Admiral William McRaven, who commanded the assault which killed Osama bin Laden.

There is no question that all runners up are in some way responsible for notable changes and landmarks of 2011, and Time has certainly paid homage to them in the "100 of 2011," citing their influence.

However, if one were to examine this year in retrospect, paging through the minutes, the hours, the days, reciting the headlines, recalling the lives and the deaths that made us look up and realize the magnitude of our world and ourselves, protesting would be at the epicenter of it all.

Isn't that what the award truly aims to accomplish, after all? To highlight the anchor of what a differentiated a year from those before it? To that end, "The Protestor" is right where it belongs.

From the Arab Spring to the Occupy movements , whether they are revered or condemned, protests have characterized 2011, many of the Time's runner-ups being essential players in such protests. Furthermore, what each protest has shared has been a roundabout belief in the group, not the person. If 2011 has reminded us of anything, it ought to be that we are more powerful together than alone, and Time's selection echoes just that.

While a sensationalist cover depicting a stereotypical western view of a Muslim woman belittles the heart of Time's argument, that 2011 was a year characterized by civil change through citizen uproar, it cannot be ignored that in fact, "The Protestor" did more to change 2011's global playing field than any one person alone.

DePaul Sophomore Nathan Coleman notes Time's influence in reflecting the struggle and social strategy of second and third worlds. "In the U.S., people have a chance at agency to create change. A lot of other countries don't have that, and the opportunity to work within a system to create change doesn't exist, so protesting is their way to do that," he said.

For those who feel Time's recipient of the Person of Year award takes light away from nominated individuals, consider that perhaps "The Protestor" is, in fact, the most genuine way to salute each and every nominee who in some way perpetuated a fighting spirit by acting as a megaphone for those who otherwise might not have been heard.

This year's recipient could not be more timely.